Oatmeal Cream Pie Recipe

May 2022. I turn forty on Saturday. The number has been here for months in theory and now it's here in fact and I find that I feel exactly what I told my therapist I'd feel: grateful. Forty years. Four children. A marriage that almost came apart and didn't and is better for the work we did on it. A kitchen that became a classroom that became a channel that became a book. A community of people who have sat at my table or watched my videos or made something in their own kitchens because I showed them how.

Gary asked what I wanted for my birthday. I said: a day in the kitchen with no particular purpose. Just cooking what I felt like making, the family around me, no agenda. He gave me exactly that. The kids stayed home and wandered in and out and helped when they felt like it. Mason made the coffee. Olivia made the appetizers — little things she'd planned on her own, beautifully arranged. Noah made a card that had forty candles drawn on it, each one with a tiny flame, and said inside: "Mom, you're as warm as all of them."

I made my grandmother's carrot cake. I did not try to do it better than Mason's version. I made mine, the way my hands know it, and it was exactly what it was: my grandmother's recipe and my hands and forty years of learning how to feed people and be fed. The candles went up, the family cheered, the wish I made is between me and God and my grandmother, wherever she is.

Forty. I'm ready for whatever comes next.

My grandmother’s carrot cake was the centerpiece that day, but it wasn’t the only thing we made — the kids wanted something they could grab and wander off with, something that felt like a treat without ceremony. These oatmeal cream pies are exactly that: soft and nostalgic and unapologetically homemade, the kind of thing that disappears off a counter before you’ve even finished the dishes. Noah ate two before dinner and I let him, because forty only happens once and some rules exist to be broken on the days that matter.

Prep Time: 20 min | Cook Time: 12 min | Total Time: 1 hr (includes cooling) | Servings: 12 sandwich cookies

Ingredients

For the cookies:
1 cup (2 sticks) unsalted butter, softened
3/4 cup granulated sugar
3/4 cup packed light brown sugar
2 large eggs, room temperature
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
1 1/2 cups all-purpose flour
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp ground cinnamon
1/2 tsp fine salt
1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
3 cups old-fashioned rolled oats
For the cream filling:
1/2 cup (1 stick) unsalted butter, softened
2 cups powdered sugar, sifted
1/2 cup marshmallow fluff
2 tbsp heavy cream
1 tsp pure vanilla extract
Pinch of fine salt

Instructions

Preheat and prep. Preheat your oven to 350°F. Line two large baking sheets with parchment paper and set aside.
Cream the butter and sugars. In a large bowl, beat the softened butter, granulated sugar, and brown sugar together with a hand or stand mixer on medium-high speed until light and fluffy, about 3 minutes.
Add eggs and vanilla. Beat in the eggs one at a time, scraping down the sides of the bowl between additions. Mix in the vanilla extract until fully incorporated.
Combine the dry ingredients. In a separate bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, cinnamon, salt, and nutmeg. Add the dry ingredients to the butter mixture and mix on low until just combined. Fold in the rolled oats with a wooden spoon or spatula.
Scoop and bake. Drop rounded tablespoons of dough onto the prepared baking sheets, spacing them about 2 inches apart. Gently flatten each ball slightly with your palm. Bake for 10–12 minutes, until the edges are just set and the centers still look slightly underdone. Do not overbake — they firm up as they cool.
Cool completely. Allow cookies to cool on the pan for 5 minutes before transferring to a wire rack. Let them cool completely before filling, at least 30 minutes.
Make the cream filling. Beat the softened butter on medium speed until smooth and fluffy. Add the powdered sugar in two additions, mixing on low between each. Add the marshmallow fluff, heavy cream, vanilla, and salt, then beat on medium-high for 2 minutes until the filling is very light and creamy.
Assemble the sandwich cookies. Flip half the cooled cookies bottom-side up. Pipe or spread a generous dollop of filling onto each one, then top with a second cookie, pressing gently so the filling reaches the edges. Serve immediately or wrap individually and store at room temperature up to 3 days.

Nutrition (per serving)

Oatmeal Cream Pie Recipe — The Sweetness You Pass Down